Optometry & Visual Performance 275 Volume 13 | Issue 4 | December 2025 Biology and Biotechnology (12.7%), and other life sciences disciplines. Knowledge of Contact Lenses A majority of participants (98.1%) had heard of contact lenses before, but only 37.4% knew how to fit and remove them correctly (Table 2). While 87.5% knew the uses of contact lenses, awareness of associated risks was lower (66.6%). The mean knowledge score was 3.67 ± 2.13 (out of 6), as reflected in Table 3, with 60.7% of respondents classified as having poor knowledge. Table 4 shows a chi-square analysis with significant differences in knowledge levels based on age (p < 0.001) and academic level (p < 0.001), with older and more advanced students demonstrating better knowledge. However, gender was not significantly associated with knowledge (p = 0.311), indicating that both males and females had similar awareness levels. Attitudes Toward Contact Lenses Before the educational intervention, 64.5% of participants had an unfavorable attitude toward contact lenses, with only 35.5% showing a positive attitude (Table 5). After the intervention, the proportion of negative attitudes slightly improved to 60.2%, but the change was not statistically significant (p = 0.130, Table 6). Table 7 shows a gender-based analysis with a significant difference in attitudes (p = 0.011), with female students (72.4%) more likely to have a positive attitude compared to males (27.6%). No significant differences were observed based on age (p = 0.211) or academic level (p = 0.200). Perceptions of Contact Lenses Negative perceptions about contact lenses remained prevalent both before and after the educational intervention, as shown in Figure 1. Before Table 2. Responses for Knowledge of Contact Lenses Statement Yes No Not sure N % N % N % I have heard about contact lenses before 370 98.1 5 1.3 2 0.5 I know what a contact lens is 361 95.8 11 2.9 5 1.3 I know the uses of a contact lens 330 87.5 21 5.6 26 6.9 I have seen and/or held a contact lens before 284 75.3 84 22.3 9 2.4 I know how to fit and remove contact lenses 141 37.4 207 54.9 29 7.7 I am aware of the risks of contact lens wear 251 66.6 74 19.6 52 13.8 Table 3. Description of Knowledge Scores Variables Max Mean ± S.D. Scores Obtainable Scores Good Poor N % N % Knowledge 6 3.67 ± 2.13 148 39.3 229 60.7 Good knowledge scores (≥5), poor knowledge scores (<5) Factor Level of Knowledge p-value Poor Good Age <0.001* 18-20 110 (48.0%) 30 (20.3%) 21-23 77 (33.6%) 64 (43.2%) 24-26 29 (12.7%) 40 (27.0%) 27-29 13 (5.7%) 12 (8.1%) >30 0 (0.0%) 2 (1.4%) Gender 0.311 Male 78 (34.1%) 58 (39.2%) Female 151 (65.9%) 90 (60.8%) Academic Level <0.001* 100 37 (16.2%) 7 (4.7%) 200 80 (34.9%) 18 (12.2%) 300 16 (7.0%) 11 (7.4%) 400 79 (34.5%) 33 (22.3%) 500 16 (7.0%) 18 (12.2%) 600 1(0.4%) 61 (41.2%) Current use of eyewear for vision correction 0.352 Yes 64 (27.9%) 48 (32.4%) No 165 (72.1%) 100 (67.6%) Table 4. Chi-Square Test Comparing Level of Knowledge Regarding Contact Lenses among Respondents to SocioDemographic Variables * statistically significant Obtainable Scores Positive Negative N % N % Attitude 36 18.26 ± 5.81 134 35.5 243 64.5 36 18.74 ± 5.78 150 39.8 227 60.2 Perception 24 12.84 ± 4.60 176 46.7 201 53.3 24 12.68 ± 4.47 173 53.3 204 54.1 Favourable or positive attitude score (≥21), unfavorable/negative attitude score (<21); Positive perception score (≥14), unfavorable/ negative perception score (<14) Table 5. Description of Attitude and Perception Scores
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